Struggling Dimaggio Awakens From Coma

Joe DiMaggio awoke on Friday from a coma that had led his family to fear the worst and sign a ``do not resuscitate'' order.

``I went to see him at noon and lo and behold, he was awake,'' said Dr. Earl Barron, a Hollywood cardiologist who is DiMaggio's chief physician.

``He reached out and gave my hand a little squeeze and opened his eyes. He couldn't talk coherently or anything, but he woke up. I don't know what to make of that, but it's better than being comatose,'' Barron said.

``That's a little hope in a bleak situation. He just keeps hanging in there. This guy's an amazing person,'' Barron said.

Even so, DiMaggio's chances remain ``slim,'' Barron said. But his heart is strong, his blood pressure is normal and there's no way to know how long it could keep beating.

Only minutes earlier at a news conference, Barron said the coma _ brought on by a persistent bout of pneumonia _ threatened the life of the 84-year-old New York Yankees legend. It was his 61st day in the intensive care unit at Memorial Regional Hospital in Hollywood, where he had a cancerous tumor removed from his right lung on Oct. 14.

DiMaggio's brother, Dom, also a former big leaguer, and two granddaughters were at his side, consulting with Morris Engelberg, who is DiMaggio's lawyer, friend and neighbor in Hollywood's Harbor Islands.

Despite reservations earlier in the week, they signed a ``do not resuscitate'' order, meaning that if his heart stops, doctors will not use electric defibrillators, heart massage or other extraordinary efforts to revive him.

``It's a measure to allow a patient to die with dignity if that should come,'' Barron said.

But they will not disconnect the breathing tube that is keeping DiMaggio alive. Barron said if the tube were removed, the Yankee Clipper would die within 30 minutes whether he was awake or in a coma. He remains sedated to help him rest and heal.

DiMaggio's good lung is ravaged by staphylococcal pneumonia, a bacterial infection that can be fatal, especially in the elderly. Three main antibiotics that combat the infection have not worked, Barron said.

On Thursday, DiMaggio went into a coma as his temperature spiked to 102 and his white blood count reached 20,000, two to four times normal. On Friday morning, he did not awaken when his sedative was halted, a way that doctors check on his condition.

``He was totally unconscious and unresponsive to stimulation . . . clearly a deterioration in the infectious situation,'' Barron said. ``It's an overwhelming infection that unfortunately we are not able to contain.''

The Hall of Famer and 11-time All-Star has had an up-and-down battle over the past two months. He has been near death three times, only to pull through. Around Thanksgiving, the prognosis looked better. He was sitting up and talking.

But that was the last time DiMaggio was able to truly speak, Barron said. Since then, the infection has taken a firmer hold.

Engelberg's office has received hundreds of cards and letters from well-wishers, including greetings from Yankee players past and present and from New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani.

More than a sports great, DiMaggio has become an American hero and celebrity through his marriage to Marilyn Monroe, his TV endorsements for a coffeemaker and his classy demeanor.

``It's so hard to watch a guy who was so strong, so powerful, so in charge gradually become so dependent'' upon machines, said Dr. Howard Barron, brother of DiMaggio's doctor.